The Basics
If you’re beginning to play guitar, learning the basics will help you to progress more quickly, develop healthy playing habits and avoid the pitfalls that most beginning guitarists encounter. If you’re an intermediate or advanced guitar player, you might discover a fresh approach…(read more)
Developing Pitch Sense
When learning a new instrument, it’s easy to get so caught up in the “doing” that we sometimes forget to stay tied to the most essential element in playing, which is listening! There is nothing more important that a musician can do than to continually develop listening skills…(read more)
Developing Your Ear: Chords
One of the most satisfying things you can do as a guitar player is to use your ear to determine the chords in a song. If you’ve never figured out songs by ear…(read more)
Know Your Numbers!
Scale degree numbers, chord tones, chord numbers, intervals, chord extensions, measure numbers, string numbers, finger numbers…(read more)
How to Simplify a Song
In this lesson I want to help you make use of written music for songs that may seem difficult or impossible to play. There are a few ways that you can alter the music to make it more playable…(read more)
The Capo
If you’ve never used a capo, you are missing out on some of the great practical solutions and creative benefits it can provide in your guitar playing. By performing one simple task – raising the pitch of the strings – it allows you to use chord voicings of your choice, match a key to your vocal range or that of other instruments or play more easily in keys…(read more)
Fingerstyle Guitar
By learning to use the fingers of your right hand to play individual strings, you will open up a wide range of musical possibilities. In addition to adding sophistication and variety to your playing, you will also find fingerstyle guitar to be easy and fun!
The following abbreviations are used for the right hand fingers…(read more)
Choosing When to Use Barre Chords
Whenever you encounter a chord that cannot be played using the basic first position chords, you can always find a way to play them using barre chords. There are other times, however, that it is appropriate to use a barre chord, even when the same chord can be formed without barring. The two most important considerations fall into two categories…(read more)
Song Beginnings
I often see students struggle with achieving a correct and effective beginning to a song. If you have ever begun at an inappropriate tempo, failed to grasp the time feel or started singing on the wrong pitch…(read more)
Altered and Extended Chords
Chord symbols with extra numbers and foreign symbols can be intimidating. Although it may be tempting to either ignore them or look for another song to learn, you can easily learn…(read more)